The Wilmingtonian., 1887-07-23
VOL. VINO. 800.
The Babies.


which has been common to all large cities
during the past fortnight may well terrorize
all families blessed with prattling humanity
That high temperature is marked pre-
disposing cause of Cholera lnfantum there
can be no question, but it is also equally
true that there are other agencies which
enter largely into the exciting causes oi
this. the Justly dreaded affection of early
life and Furthermore these agencies are in
the main subject to human influences.
In passing upon the primal causes OF
Cholera Infantum it should be insisted that
a child should not be allowed the breast
when the mother is overheated. 1t is SO
common for the mother to 60 out OF a warm
kitchen or upon her return from marketing
to nurse her baby and not unfrequently
most alarming gastric and Intestinal dis
turbances are direct sequences of such i'm
prudence.
1t should be ever borne also in mind it is
not the heat alone that makes the life oil
babies in the city SO much more preoarious
than in the country; it is impure air and the
impure food. The first duty of mother is
to keep her baby as cool and as clean as
possible, bathing it frequently, dressing it
lightly and keeping it as much as she can
away from the bad air of the kitchen, the
alley and the cutters.
1t is nearly always possible to find com
paraUively cool spot on the shady side OF the
house, where the Children can be kept
comfortable. Afternoon excursions to
Philadelphia on the river will do much to
revive the exhausted vital forces of the little
ones.
Unquestionably the matter of food is the
gravest problem that surrounds hequestion
of early life. That child is indeed unfor-
tunate who is not permitted to draw its sus-
tenance from maternal sources as it is so
difficult during the heated term to get nour-
shment which is relished and at the same
time easy of assimilation.
Children not nursing should be fed upon
cows milk, but upon the first invasion of
vomiting and diarrhma there should be
temporary halt called upon the milk diet
and rigid inquiry should be instituted as
to the character of the milk supply.
A most pernicious and, destructive theory
has been handed down to us from the dark
ages, viz: 'That looseness of the bowels
indicates a necessity for dose of Castor
Oil" This somewh,t general pra tice is at
utter variance with good common sense.
What is demanded in the very early history
of Cholera Infantum is soothing, restraining
system of medication. Quiet the bowels
and support the patient
Keep the child cool. Bathe him daily
with tepid water slightly saline.
Perhaps as many children are killed by
overfecding as by bad food. In hot weather
they should be given their food in very
small quantities at a time, and the moment
a child shows signs Of indigestion, by vom-
iting or diarrhea, its milk should be stopped
altogether. When the food is not digested
it undergoes sort of fermentation in the
stomach and bowels, and this is one Of the
conditions of cholera infantum.
The sick child had best have no food at
all for half day at least, and then no milk,
but broth or barley water or some sucn
easily digested liquid, administered care
fully as the doctor may direct. Often
child will take the bottle greedlly because
it is feversh and thirsty, and il che mother
knows no better she will really poison her
child, by giving it food that it C" mot digest.
Instead of milk it should have pure water
or barley water, or sometimes bits of ice, to
quench its thirst. Usually the child may be
allowed to drink freely, but its food must be
given with the greatest caution. 1t is to
the feeding that doctor will devote the
closest attention and the most minute in
strnctions, which ought to be followed ex-
actly, even though the mother may think
that the baby is starving" So it may be,
but not for lack of food. 1t is Tor lack of
the power of absorbing food, which is often
the result of its having had too much.
With the utmost care and the greatest
skill, many of the little ones will succumb.
Even the rich, with their country homes
and their dairies and every possible re-
source, are not alW ays able to save their
babies from the summer scourge. But care
, essness and ignorance kill many that a little
knowledge might save, and there can be no
doubt that the infant mortality in all our
great cities is still needlessly and discredit-
ably large.